The journey of faith starts with elementary truths: Jesus is the Savior, God is faithful, and the Spirit leads us. These fundamentals make a difference, but they aren’t intended to be the stopping point. Believers are as much encouraged to grow deeper in faith, wisdom, and spiritual insight as children are encouraged to mature.<\/p>\n
Growth, however, is tricky. If we are not thoughtful and proceed without direction, we will be led astray by good-sounding but faulty teachings. If we don\u2019t grow at all, we are shallow and unprepared to deal with difficult issues. The solution is balance\u2014gradually growing while still being anchored in what we originally believed.<\/p>\n
Why Maturity Matters<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n Maturity provides stability. A mature Christian can withstand doubts, questions, and pressures and not collapse. Not that we have all our answers, but that we are grounded in the Word of God so we can test what we hear and cling to what is true.<\/p>\n For instance, when faced with conflicting messages, an immature faith will freak out. But maturity provides us with confidence to take a step back, open the Bible, and look for God’s wisdom. This way, maturity safeguards us from being influenced by every new trend or idea.<\/p>\n How to Grow with Balance<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n We don’t get growth overnight but through habits practiced daily: prayer, reading Scripture, and being around a fellowship of believers. These small choices add up and over time strengthen us, just like how exercise strengthens the body. With practice, we can walk more confidently and stand up straighter, even when life gets wobbly.<\/p>\n When it comes to balance, it is not always easy because it requires humility. To be a learner, teachable, and acknowledge we do not know keeps pride away. Ironically, humility itself is one of the most obvious indicators of maturity.<\/p>\n In Christian Posture: Walk Tall, Stand Straight in a Crooked World \u2014 Core Doctrines, Vol. I & II,<\/i><\/em> David Parker Mitchell<\/i><\/em> emphasizes this balance prominently and most effectively. Volume I<\/i><\/em> lays the groundwork with the basics, and Volume II shows how believers can move into adulthood without abandoning the basics. He reminds readers that posture; both physical and spiritual; isn’t something you naturally do. It takes focus, practice, and coaching.<\/p>\n The Christian life is long-term. There’s always something new to discover and more ways to expand. The challenge is to do it with maintaining the balance, that is only possible by developing maturity along with keeping a tight hold on the fundamentals. By maintaining consistent habits, remaining humble, and grounding ourselves in God’s Word, we can continue growing without tripping up.<\/p>\n As faith develops in such a manner, it not only makes us strong but also inspires those around us. In a distorted world, evenhanded growth enables us to walk upright and stride boldly.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The journey of faith starts with elementary truths: Jesus is the Savior, God is faithful, and the Spirit leads us. These fundamentals make a difference, but they aren’t intended to be the stopping point. Believers are as much encouraged to grow deeper in faith, wisdom, and spiritual insight as children are encouraged to mature. Growth, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-344","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-blogs"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianposture.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianposture.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianposture.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianposture.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianposture.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=344"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/christianposture.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":347,"href":"https:\/\/christianposture.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/344\/revisions\/347"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/christianposture.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=344"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianposture.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=344"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/christianposture.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=344"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}